Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is again sponsoring a special fellowship exchange program, Mosaic Taiwan, for "emerging US leaders" aged 20-35 who are interested in spending some time learning about Taiwan firsthand. The program lasts about three weeks, June 14-July 4, and includes a wide array of activities, including meetings with Taiwanese business, cultural, and political leaders and visits to museums, national parks, and of course the ubiquitous Taiwanese night markets, pictured above. This is a new initiative of the Ma administration to try to cultivate an interest in Taiwan among young Americans headed for careers in policy or politics. The first group of fellows visited Taiwan in June and July 2014.

Note that there currently does not appear to be information about the application process on the program website. The application materials have instead been circulated via email; they are posted below, along with the official description of the program. The deadline to apply is February 21, 2015, via email to application@mosaictaiwan.net.

Mosaic Taiwan is a fellowship exchange program for emerging US leaders wishing to gain firsthand experience of the Republic of China (Taiwan), a vibrant Asian democracy where traditional Chinese culture has prospered. Set up by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Mosaic Taiwan program provides young students and professionals with interest in global affairs with the opportunity to explore the beauty of Taiwan’s natural environment, and to better understand its culture and society through extensive exchanges with local leaders from various fields. It also gives young leaders from Taiwan international exposure by fostering dialogue with their overseas counterparts.

On February 20, the Taiwan Democracy Project will host Ashley Esarey, a research associate at the China Institute at the University of Alberta. His talk is entitled, "Communication Power and Taiwan's Democratization." The full abstract is below. The talk is free and open to the public; you are encouraged to RSVP at the event page here.

Professor Esarey received his Ph.D. in Political Science from Columbia University and was awarded the An Wang Postdoctoral Fellowship by Harvard University. He has held academic appointments at Middlebury College, Whitman College, and the University of Alberta, where he is an instructor in the departments of East Asian Studies and Political Science. Esarey has written on democratization and authoritarian resilience, digital media and politics, and information control and propaganda. His recent publications include My Fight for a New Taiwan: One Woman’s Journey from Prison to Power (with Lu Hsiu-lien 呂秀蓮) and The Internet in China: Cultural, Political, and Social Dimensions (with Randolph Kluver).

Communication Power and Taiwan's DemocratizationIn 2010-2011, the "Arab Spring" brought unexpected revolutions to many Middle Eastern and North African countries. Why did these seemingly invincible regimes fall, while China remained durably authoritarian? Many observers credited global media for the political transformations. While the hopes of Arab Spring democracy have proven to be fragile or short-lived, we can effectively explore the relationship between political communication and regime stability by turning our attention to Taiwan’s remarkable democratization, which remains under-appreciated by the international community.This talk considers political communication in Taiwan from the martial law era to the heady days of democratic activism beginning in the late 1970s and lasting till the 1990s. Professor Esarey argues that the Chiang Ching-kuo administration’s diminishing capacity to control a small but influential opposition (dangwai) media, and even mainstream newspapers, gradually permitted reformers to reframe debates, reset the political agenda, and challenge state narratives and legitimacy claims. When viewed in comparative perspective, Taiwan’s successful democratization suggests that seeking regime change is impracticable, and even perilous, without considerable and sustainable media freedom as well as opportunities for the public to advocate, evaluate, and internalize alternative political views. A balance of “communication power” between state and societal actors facilitates a negotiated and peaceful transition from authoritarianism.

About Me

I am a political scientist by training, with interests in democratization, parties and elections, and the politics of new and developing democracies. My regional expertise is in East Asia, with special focus on Taiwan.